Question : Compressed Biogas Plants

(a) whether the Government proposes to set up a large number of compressed biogas plants
across the country under the Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation
(SATAT) and if so, the details thereof;
(b) the steps taken by the Government for generating gas from municipal waste as well as from
forest and agricultural waste including animal-husbandry and marine waste; and
(c) the further steps taken by the Government to boost the availability of affordable and clean
transport fuel?

MINISTER OF PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
(SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)
(a) and (b)Yes Sir. Government of India has launched Sustainable Alternative Towards
Affordable Transportation (SATAT) initiative on 1.10.2018 to promote Compressed Bio Gas
(CBG) as an alternative, green transport fuel for efficient management of biomass and organic
waste includingmunicipal waste as well as from forest and agricultural waste including animalhusbandry
and marine waste. This initiative envisages establishment of large number of CBG
plants by private entrepreneurs. As part of the SATAT scheme, Oil and Gas Marketing
Companies are inviting Expression of Interest (EoI) for procurement of CBG on long term basis.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has included CBG plants in Priority Sector Lending.
(c)The Government has assured supply of domestic gas for CNG (Transport) purpose. Expansion
of CGD network throughout the country is a continuous process to ensure adequate availability
of cleaner transport fuel like Compressed Natural Gas (CNG). In this regard, Petroleum &
Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) is the authority to grant authorization to the entities for
the development of City Gas Distribution (CGD) network in Geographical Areas (GAs) as per
PNGRB Act, 2006. So far PNGRB has authorized 232 GAs for across the country up to 10th
CGD Bidding Round covering more than 400 districts in the country in 27 States/Union
Territories (UTs). There are about 2,543 operational CNG Stations in the country as on
30.11.2020.
Government has notified the ‘National Policy on Biofuels-2018’ on 04 June, 2018. Government
is adopting a multi-pronged approach to promote and encourage use of biofules by blending
ethanol in petrol through Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) Programme using ethanol derived from
multiple feedstock, development of Second Generation (2G) ethanol technologies and its
commercialization for augmenting ethanol production and blending biodiesel in diesel through
Biodiesel Blending Programme.
Further, a scheme of Sustainable Alternative Towards Affordable Transportation (SATAT) on 1st
October 2018 to promote Compressed Bio-Gas (CBG) as an alternative and green transport fuel
has also been launched.
*****